Appliance for filling bottle carriers



Sept. 9, 94.1. A. w ss 2,255,576

APPLIANCE FOR FILLING BOTTLE CARRIERS Original Filed Nov. 5, 1937 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 .50 J8-, as 57 34 40,- H

BYM I,

I. NEYS Sept. 9, 1941. A, WESSELMAN 2,

APPLIANCE FOR FILLING BOTTLE CARRIERS Original Fi led Nov. 5, 1957- 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR fii/ber' Msse/man A o NEYS Patented Sept. 9, 1941 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE Original application November 5, 1937, Serial No. 172,883. Divided and this application January 31, 1939, Serial No. 253,854

Claims.

This is a divisional application of my copendi-ng application filed November 5, 1937, Serial No. 172,883, entitled, Appliance for and method of filling bottle carriers.

The instant invention relates to apparatus for use with bottle carriers of the character shown in my copending application Serial No. 118,621, filed 'Dec. 31, 1936 and in my issued Patent No. 2,171,615, dated September 5, 1939.

An object of the invention is to provide means for holding the bottle carrier in bottle receiving position whereby to expedite and simplify the assembly of a carrier and a charge or load oi bottles.

Another object is to provide a simple and inexpensive device for holding the bottle carrier in bottle receiving position during the filling or loading operation. 7

' These and other objects are attained by the means described herein and disclosed in the accompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 is an end elevational view of a device embodying the invention and having a bottle carrier positioned therein, parts being shown in section.

Fig. 2 is a plan view of the parts shown in Fig. 1', the bottle carrier being omitted.

Fig. 3 is a side elevational view of the device shown in 2. r

' Fig. 4 is a view somewhat similar to'Fig. 1' but showing bottles in various positions within the carrier in the course of filling the latter.

]As explained in my referred to copending applications, bottle carriers, indicated at I0, are

made of cardboard having a base or bottom ll,

side walls 12 and 13, top or cover members 14 and I5, and handle members or flaps l6 and ll. The topor cover members 14 and I5 of the carrier are provided with bottle receiving apertures l8 and I9 and the material struck from, the cover members l4 and [5 for producing the apertures 13 and I9 is developed into flaps and 2|. The flaps 20 and 2| may be positioned to lie adjacent and upon the inner faces of the side walls l2 and I3 in the assembled carrier and charge of bottles, or the flaps may be subdivided into end members and a central portion for providing partitions between bottles disposed on a common side of the carrier H3 in accordance with my said application Serial No. 118,621.

In assembling a load or group of bottles in a carrier such as ill, the carrier is placed in the holder .30 so as to assume substantially the position shownby the carrier to in Fig. 1. At such time "the fiapsZO and 21,being*hinged along the wall 34 and comprising a pair of inwardly --proline ,ofseparationof the sides I 2 and :13 from the .top members l4 and I5, extend upwardly as shown in Fig. l. Ifv it is intended for the flaps 2.0 and 2| to wholly lie adjacent to the inner faces of the side walls 12 .and I3, such flaps may be moved to substantially such positions incident to setting up the carrier in the holder, or an operator, when first introducing bottles into the .openings I8 and I9 may bring the bases of the bottles into contact with the outer faces of the flaps 2i) and 21, and thus move or force the flaps through the openings I8 and t9 to the indicated positions adjacent the inner faces of the sides l2 and I3.

When parts of the flaps 29 and 2| are to be used as partitions between bottles assembled on a common side of a carrier l9, an operator permits the flaps 29 and 2| to extend upwardly in substantial alignment with the side walls l2 and i3, incident to mounting of the carrier in the holder. An operator then inserts two bottles, bases foremost, through each of the openings 18 and 19. A third bottle is then introduced through each of the openings I3 and I9, such third bottle being inserted between two bottles previously inserted on either side of the carrier. Incident to the insertion of the third bottle on either side, the base of the bottle is brought-into contact with the outer face of one of the flaps 20 or 2| and the flap is then forced through one of the openings H3 or iii, thus causing an end portion of each flap to bend at right angles to the central or intermediate portion of the flap and place the end portions of the flap in position to serve as a partition between adjacent bottles, as shown in detail in my said application Serial No. 118,621. g

The holder 30 is preferably made of sheet met-aland comprises a suitable base 31 that may be mounted upon a support 32-! and which support may be in the nature of a wooden block, mounted upon a suitable flanged coupling 3-31 and which coupling in turn is mounted upon a suitable standard 3-41. The base "5| is provided with upwardly and outwardly extending sides 32 and 33. At one end ,a closure or end mem-,

ber '34 is provided and at the other end, or the carrier entry end, a positioning b1ock35 may be mounted. The distance between the inner edge or face 36 of the block 35 and the inner face 81 of the end wall '34 approximates the length of a carrier Ill. The rear terminal end 34 comprises a wall-like member previously mentioned, and a bottle positioner 38 uponthe inner face of the jecting panel-like members 39 and 40. The panel members 39 and 40 are intended to prevent the bottles, when introduced into the carrier, from being moved too close to the end of the carrier disposed adjacent the wall 34 whereby to properly position the bottles in the'carrier. The panels 39 and! stop short of the bottom or base 3i whereby to provide a space 50 beneath panels 39 and 49 into which the edge of the carrier It may be introduced incident to positioning the carrier in the holder. The upper edge of the wall 34 is developed into a pair of inwardly turned flanges 4| and 42 that are spaced by an opening or slot 43. The slot 43 is. provided to accommodate upwardly extending handle members l6 and ll of a carrier l9 andtheinwardly turned flanges 4i and are intended to i lie over the cover members I4 and it of a carrier and to thus substantially hold the-carrier in,

the set up position shown in Fig. 1.

.The base BI is provided with an aperture or opening 44 adjacentand inwardly of the block 35 r and through which opening an operator may introducev his hand for initiating the lifting or removal action incident to extraction of a loaded carrier from the holder.

As shown herein, the end wall. member 34 is shown as a separate piece of sheet metal having its edgees flanged as shown at 45 and which flanged ends are riveted or otherwise suitably mountedupon the outer faces of the side members 32 and 33 as well as extending over the outer face of the bottom or base 3i.

The base 31 may be attached to theblock 32l by any suitable means, for example, screws or bolts 46. v j 1 The inwardly turned flanges ll and 42 are spaced from the flanged ends 45 of the end 34 and from the uppermost portions 4! of the sides 32 and 33, as shovvnat 48, whereby, to accommodate the device to the corners 220i the carrier.

In fview of the detailed explanation of the manner in which the holder cooperates with bottle carriers incident to the filling operation of the carrier, the use and operation of the device is obvious. n v 5 While there'has been explained herein the steps of manually setting up a carrier in the holder, and of manually inserting two bottles I through each Ofthe openings l8 and I9, and then manually inserting the flaps 20 and 2| by push ing a third bottle against each of such flaps, incident to forcing the flaps and third bottles into position between two bottles already insertedon each side of the carrier, it is to be understood that the described method of loading the carrier may I be accomplished by mechanized means, if desired.

.The carriers referred to herein, are intended rimacy for use in distributing .Coca Cola in bottles. 7 Bottled .Coca Cola is apparently, uni versally, dispensed in bottles of the general shape or design shown in United States Design Patent No. 63,657 of December 25, 1923, issued to J. Root. Such bottles have anannular central depression disposed between the base and anannularrounded upper or shoulder portion. These characteristics of the bottles are taken into consideration in connection with applicants bottle carriers, the holder for bottle carriers disclosed herein-and the methodemployed in assembling six such bottles in a carrier." 7 I There are also certain practical matters that must be considered with the problems met by the applicants within and related inventions. The

. ture thereof.

preferred form of applicants bottle carrier, and the form which has been accepted by the trade and which is now in great demand by the trade, has its handle flap portions l6 and I1 secured together as shown in Fig. 4 of my said application, Serial Number 106,357, and having a median score line in the base or bottom thereof, as shown in Fig. 4 of my said application Serial Number 118,621. These carriers, when so constructed,

present some little difficulty in separating the 7 two half sections of the carrier, preparatory to placing the bottles therein, if one should seek to grasp the two half sections and so separate them. However, by striking the end comprising the base, or by placing that end against a firm surface'and exerting pressure against that end, the half sections readily bulge outwardly in opposite directions. An operator, after such initial bend, ordinarily inserts his hand into the opening thus pro. vided between the two half sections and may then bend the blank alongvarious of the score lines. If the holder shown herein is being used, the bottom of the carrier may be placed on the base of the holder and moved into position between the end wall 34 and the block 36. Incident to moving the one end of the carrier beneath the flanges 4|.and 42, the blank is bent'along the score lines between the sides and top or cover members as shown at 22 herein. 'The flanges 4| and 42 are located above and overhang the holder base at an elevation such as to permit the; inclined top member of the carrier to be slightly depressed and then inserted beneath the flanges in the resultant strained condition. The flanges thereby perform to limit any tendency of the carrier to change its shape or increase the elevation of its apex while held by theholder. In contacting the upper or top portion of the car rier, the flanges serve to distend the sides of the carrier, it being understood that, as stated in the preceding paragraph, thecarrier initially is 001- lapsed and must be distended before insertion into the holder. naturally will'tend to resume its'collapsed con-di-- tion, at least to some extent, and it is for this reason that flanges 4| and 42 are provided on the holder to arrest this tendency. With the inclined top member of the carrier placed beneath the flanges, therefore, a desired shape/for the carrier is maintained which is favorable to the filling operation.

As a practical matter, the flaps 2iland are not wholly severed from the blank,,a1Qn the upper edges of such flaps, incident to manufac- Small sections of. stock, possibly one-sixteenth of an inch Wide, generally *two for each flap, areleft at. the upper outer edges of the flaps. These connecting webs are provided to prevent the flaps fromextending bee;

istics of the cardboard stock from which-the carriers are made, an" operator. who seeks to fill a carrier without the use. of holder, ordinarily finds that two hands are insufd'cient t hold. the

Being of cardboard, the carrier carrier parts in position for expeditious loading or charging of the carrier with bottles.

Assuming now that a carrier has been properly positioned on the holder, the bottles may be readily inserted in the carrier as previously explained. Preferably, the first two bottles introduced at a given side of the carrier, are moved apart after insertion thereof, thus providing adequate space between them for the entry of the third bottle between them. Also, by reason of the peculiar shape of Coca Cola bottles, it is preferable to first partly insert the third bottle at one side of the carrier and then, While the referred to annular recess between the base and bulged upper portion of such bottle is in position to receive the opposite flap and base of a third bottle on the opposite side of the carrier, a third bottle is introduced into the other side of the carrier. Thus an area is provided, for slightly turning the bottles in an are extending about a horizontal axis, for ready insertion of the third bottle at each side of the carrier.

What is claimed is:

1. In a device of the class described the combination of a base, an upstanding wall at one end or the base, inturned flanges along the upper edge of the well, said flanges being spaced by a relatively small opening between the flanges, side walls extending upwardly from the lateral edges of the base, the side walls, adjacent said end wall terminating short of said flanges, whereby to provide an opening at each side of the device, adjacent the end thereof, and a block at the other end of the base and extending above the upper face of the base, whereby the block and end Wall define a bottle carrier receiving space on said base, and a support means for said device.

2. In a device of the class describedthe combination of a base, an upstanding wall at one end of the base, inturned flanges along the upper edge of the wall, said flanges being spaced by a relatively small opening between the flanges, side walls extending upwardly from the lateral edges.

of the base, the side walls, adjacent said endwall terminating short of said flanges, whereby to provide an opening at each side of the device, adjacent the end thereof, a block at the other end or" the base and extending above the upper face of the base, whereby the block and end wall define a bottle carrier receiving space on said base, a support means for said device, and means extending inwardly from the inner face of the end wall for spacing bottles from the end wall as such bottles are introduced in bottle carriers positioned in the bottle carrier receiving space on the base.

3. A bottle carrier holder for bottle carriers comprising a base, sides, converging top members connected to the upper edges of the sides and to one another and contacting handle members ex,- tending upwardly from the top members, and which carriers are substantially open between the ends of the base, sides and top members and the top members of which are provided with large openings through which a plurality of bottles may be inserted incident to loading bottles in the carrier, said holder comprising a base for receiving the bottle carrier base, side walls for supporting the outer faces of the bottle carrier sides, an end wall against which the one end of a bottle carrier is adapted to abut, and separated overhanging abutment means carried by the end wall of the holder for extending over the bottle carrier top members and for receiving the bottle carrier handle members between said abutment means, whereby to position the bottle carrier top members in inclined position with the openings in said top members opening upwardly to receive bottles to be introduced into the bottle carrier.

4. A holder for bottle carriers of the type having a bottom, side walls, and a pair of apertured inclined top members extending upwardly from the side walls to form an apex, said holder comprising a base having a carrier entry end, an open top, and a rear terminal end toward which a carrier is advanced when inserted into the holder, sides on the holder base and extending upwardly therefrom to support the carrier side walls during insertion of bottles through the apertures of the top members of the carrier while the carrier rests upon the holder base, and means for engaging said inclined top members of the inserted carrier while disposed within the holder, said engaging means comprising narrow flange means inclined to conform with the inclination of said top members overhanging a. small margin of the rear terminal end of the holder base, and directed toward the entry end of the base, said flange means being at an elevation above the base which is sufliciently less than the normal height of the carrier from its bottom to its apex during use of the carrier to maintain the carrier side walls in distended position, with the top members thereby held rigidly inclined for easy reception of bottles through the apertures thereof.

5. A holder for bottle carriers of the type having a bottom, side walls, and a pair of apertured inclined top members extending upwardly from the side walls to form an apex, said holder comprising a base having a carrier entry end, an open top, and a rear terminal end toward which a carrier is advanced when inserted into the holder, sides on th holder base and extending upwardly therefrom to support the carrier side walls during insertion of bottles through the apertures of the top members of the carrier While the carrier rests upon the holder base, and means for engaging said inclined top members of the inserted carrier while disposed within the holder, said engaging means comprising a pain of stationary separated abutments inclined to conform with the inclination of the top members and means supporting said abutments in overhanging relationship relative to the rear terminal end of the holder base, at opposite. sides of the center line of said base, said abutments extending from the location above the rear terminal end of the base toward the carrier entry end thereof and at an elevation above said base which is sufliciently less than the normal height of the carrier from its bottom to its apex during use of the carrier to maintain the carrier side walls in a distended position with the top members thereby held rigidly inclined for easy reception of bottles through the apertures thereof.

ALBERT WESSELMAN. 

